Some reward: a couple of coins every now and then, working on your arthritis most nights, ignored, friendless, no loving relationship to speak of, risk a beating from thugs, die young looking very old indeed. All that and you get people spending hours on their expensive laptops talking about you, even though they have never spoken to you, don't know your name and would rather they didn't have to step around you every day because, well, you're inconvenient.

I'm trying the "Look,I'm a local and get fed up being asked to give money every time that I leave home" method.This is true,and I often have an apology,which then makes me feel vaguely guilty for having said this to a poor wretch who is inevitably wrapped in a blanket ,even in the height of summer. There are 'professional' beggars..I overheard a group of youngsters on the train coming into Waterloo who were working out where they were to position themselves around the bridge.
Chuggers are invariably pleasant youngsters,but can become persistent.Although I told one young man that I really couldn't afford to sponsor anything else he kept telling me that it only worked out at 16p a day and that surely I could afford that? I will now cross the road if I see one looming on the horizon !